


"Hawk Moth, I've come to bargain!"

by TheBrcklayer



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Badass Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Crack, Crack Treated Seriously, Gabriel Agreste Has a Bad Day, Gabriel Agreste | Papillon | Hawk Moth Identity Reveal, Gen, Hot Mess Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Inspired by a Movie, It is a time loop after all, MCU References, Marinette strikes a bargain, Not a Crossover, Post-Episode: s03 Miracle Queen (The Battle of the Miraculous Part 2), Protective Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Rabbit Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Snake Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Time Loop, did I mention that?, implied gore, not graphically described though, repeated character death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-11
Updated: 2021-02-11
Packaged: 2021-03-17 21:01:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,053
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29356905
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheBrcklayer/pseuds/TheBrcklayer
Summary: “Who are you? How’d you find me?”“That doesn’t really matter does it,” the heroine responded, just barely about to keep the rage out of her voice as she glides across the room like a spectre. “Hawk Moth, I’ve come to bargain.”------------Marinette fully blamed Nino for this, after movie night gave her an idea...
Comments: 17
Kudos: 128





	"Hawk Moth, I've come to bargain!"

**Author's Note:**

> Don't own, don't make money off Miraculous Ladybug. Don't even pretend to.

Marinette groaned, sinking down into the folds of her chaise as she fell face first. Her transformation was released in a shower of red light and her exhaustion began to catch up with her.

“...another day, another victory,” she mumbled, her bones weary and her muscles sore. “...I swear he’s fighting more furiously than ever.”  
  
That, Marinette knew with a sickening feeling was probably true. Hawk Moth wasn’t stupid, he knew they were down one Guardian and more to the point the only one who had the Miracle Box now was… yeah, her. And Hawk Moth also likely knew that she barely had any training.

It was like sieging a castle now, for comparison. In medieval times, laying siege to a castle had never been about smashing through walls or destroying other defences. No, it had been a game of patience. It had been always outlasting your opponent, until they were weary and their supplies had run dry.

That was _exactly_ what was happening here. It wasn’t a game of superheroes vs supervillains anymore. It was simply outlasting the other. Hawk Moth knew that she couldn’t keep this up forever, her and Cat Noir.

Their support base had been whittled away, their allies exposed. He’d humiliated them honestly, striking at their heart and turning one of their own against them. That had been the worst part. They thought themselves untouchable. What was that they said about pride goeth before the fall?  
  
Chloe… that had been such a disappointment. Marinette had honestly had such high hopes for her. She’d been doing _so_ well, she’d honestly seemed to have been trying to put in the extra effort. But… 

“It wasn’t your fault you know,” Tikki soothed, nestling herself in her chosen’s hair and knowing exactly what she was thinking. Marinette knew she had always been very easy to read. “Chloe did what she thought was best for herself.”  
  
“...she wanted power,” Marinette muttered. “So she reached out and grabbed it. Our team’s been nearly destroyed… me and Cat…”  
  
She choked back a sob. 

“...you know, when we had a team by our side, I honestly thought we could win. That we were unbeatable,” Marinette went on. “He… Hawk Moth. He took that from us. He took our support, our back up!”

“You can always find new teammates,” Tikki advised. “...you’re the Guardian now, you can choose-”

“But that’s just it, I _am_ the Guardian now!” Marinette whined. “...I never received the proper training or anything! Master Fu… he had to go before my training was completed. I don’t know what I’m supposed to do, oh this is a disaster!”

She was totally going to fail at this, she knew it. She was probably going to be the worst Guardian in history, and she was totally going to get all of the other Miraculous taken away from her. Hawk Moth would steal them all, and he’d have all the power in the world! 

“...you’re not a traditional Guardian, _true,_ but…” Tikki started and Marinette let out a groan.

“...way to rub it in…” she muttered.  
  
“But! But that’s what I like about you,” Tikki continued, now floating in front of her. “Because you don’t know what to do right, what the rules and traditions are, you don’t know what to do wrong. You actually have the benefit of deciding what you want to be for yourself. You could be a very untraditional Guardian Marinette, and become a whole new kind of one!”

“You really think so…?” Marinette sniffled, still _oh_ so incredibly worn out after so long a battle. Day in, day out, the cycle repeated. Wake up, go to school, save the world. 

“I know so,” Tikki confirmed with a little nod. “As I’ve said before… Marinette, you are different, but different as in surprising, unpredictable, and endearing, and very talented. You learn fast.”

Words from a simpler time, back when she thought it was going to be so easy to be a superhero. When it was just her, Cat and her feelings. 

She chuckled, well apparently some things had changed very little. They’d just gotten more complicated.

But she saw Tikki’s point, and cuddled the little fairy even as she drifted off into dreamland. The morning came, with a new purpose and a plan.

It was time to take the fight to Hawk Moth, for far too long they’d been on the backfoot. It was now time to put some serious focus on finding his lair. 

The sun had just barely risen over the horizon, and Marinette found a fire escape and began climbing up it. And she was climbing, and she was climbing, and she was climbing. Soon, she reached the top of the building and all of Paris was before her.

She couldn’t just wait for Hawk Moth to do something, and react to it. No, it was time to start getting really proactive. It was time to start actually working out where the akumas came from. And that meant waiting for one.

The day would soon warm up, and this rooftop would bake like a pastry in the oven. The roof would soon become like hot tar. Already, sweat was beginning to trail down her face forming little beads.

But Marinette couldn’t be bothered by something as simple as _the weather._ She had a job to do. She trained her eyes to the sky and began searching. And searching. And searching and _searching._

Narrowed eyes searched the familiar skyline, hands gripping a pair of binoculars tightly and trying not to lose their grip. It was a trying task, trying to pick out one tiny black butterfly from miles of stone and blue sky. 

There was a chance Hawk Moth wouldn’t even try to akumatize anyone today! But he did seem to be very regimented, never losing his grip for too long. Every two to three days, another akuma. Just enough time for her and Cat to recharge their batteries, but constantly keeping them aware and _paranoid._ Eyes _constantly_ trained to the sky. It was a horrible feeling. 

The ping of a text.

_He_ _y girl, you up yet?_

_Yeah, I’m up. Alya, if this is about the project, don’t worry! I got it all done!_

It was amazing she had managed that, Marinette mused. One hand worried about Hawk Moth’s doings, the other worried about her schoolwork. It was agonizing now, trying to balance her increasingly difficult school life with her other life that seemed to grow more dangerous with each passing day.

_Cool! I was worried actually, but that’s not what I was wanting to talk to you about actually._

_Oh? Then what is it?_

_Movie night, remember? Nino wanted us to all come over for Doctor Strange, you remember now right? Personally, I was hoping for Black Panther, Wakanda Forever right?_

_Oh! RIGHT! Don’t you worry, Al. I’ll be there, I promise I won’t miss it!_

_I’ll hold you to that!_ _  
_ _  
_ Personally, it was really what she needed. Just some time with her friends, really, and losing herself for a while in a world where everything was certain. Good always won out over evil, all with a few cheap tricks and a cheesy one-liner or two.

Soon she was transported to that world, with the opening notes of the 70s being the very first thing letting her know the ‘Shining Star’ had just appeared. 

Marinette tried not to feel queasy at the operation scenes, though she did have to suppress a giggle at Stephen tapping his foot to the beat. Outside the operation room, a gaggle of doctors watched the proceedings. Some, Marinette suspected, only to see the handsome hero. Ugh, fangirls. (...not that she could blame them in this instance.)

_“Oh, come on, Billy. You’ve got to be messing with me.”_

On the screen, the other doctor said: _“No, doctor.”_

Stephen scoffed. _“Feels So Good, Chuck Mangione, 1977. Seriously, Billy, you said this one would be hard.”_

Laughter rose up from the group at just how _casual_ Stephen was. Here he was, performing dangerous operations but all the while challenging his fellow doctors to name the year of a song’s release!

All the same, this reflected his arrogance and throughout the first 30 minutes of the movie more signs revealed themselves. Him, passing up patients just because _he_ believed that he couldn’t save them.

Sure, Marinette was gaping in awe at his expensive collection of watches but at the same time she wanted to smack the good doctor upside the head. Conspicuous consumption was incredibly obvious on his part and _oh_ how her heart broke all the same at the sight of his hands.

Metal pins, impossible to count were stuck in his hands and the scream of horror that burbled up from her throat nearly deafened the room. The howl of grief from Stephen was even worse. 

_“11 stainless steel pins in the bones. Multiple torn ligaments. Severe nerve damage in both hands. You were on the table for 11 hours.”_ Palmer explained, and Marinette’s heart just couldn’t help but go out for Stephen.

 _“Look at these fixators.”_ the future Master of the Mystic Arts nearly sobbed, examining himself in faint horror.

_“No one could have done better.”_

And Marinette nearly cried at the next line.

_“I could have done better.”_

Of course she knew the origin story, it was a classic case of pride goeth before the fall. Watching the next few minutes all the same was… hard though. Despite his arrogance, Marinette knew him to be a good man dealt a very bad hand.

“...aww, does someone have a crush?” Alya couldn’t help but ask seeing the look on her best friend. “...you’re thirsty for him, admit it girl! You want to join the Cumber-bitches!”

“Not the time Al!” Marinette said, dabbing at her eyes, and yes Alya had been doing the same.

“I’ll link you to some fansites later…” her best friend winked at her. On screen, it was like an acid trip in high definition. Strange tumbled through dimensions, in a world of color and psychedelic madness. Enter the multiverse and face it’s many horrors. 

There came a scream, was it from Mylene? Onscreen, a massive face of shadow and fire.

 _“....the source code that shapes reality. We harness energy drawn from other dimensions of the multiverse, to cast spells, conjure shields and weapons to make magic.”_ _  
_ _  
_ Marinette could use some of that magic right now, some of that source code. There had to be new ways to defeat… no. NO! She’d come here to escape all of that, tonight Hawk Moth was merely a shadow lurking in the darkness. Something to be put into the back of her mind.

_“Yeah, that sounds like a cult.”_

And she laughed.

_“It’s not a cult.”_

_“Well, that’s what a cultist would say.”_

The wit came fast and furious but levity was balanced out by horror even as the world went topsy turvy. Death came again, and it struck at Marinette’s very heart.

_“I never saw your future, only its possibilities. You have such a capacity for goodness. You always excelled, but not because you crave success, but because of your fear of failure.”_

She was crying again, she knew it. The Ancient One, coming so soon into Stephen’s life and so wise… now wasn’t that familiar? And just like her master, she had to go. The words she spoke, they seemed to cut her soul. It was like the Celtic woman saw straight through her. 

Naturally, Marinette felt the same fury Doctor Strange did at her death. She wanted to see it avenged, but what she did not expect was what came next. Time was twisted, brick and mortar rebuilt and magic took control. For once, a battle was averted and a villain defeated not by fist. But by a cheap trick, and yes, a cheesy one liner.

_“Just as you gave Kaecilius powers from your dimension, I’ve brought a little power from mine. This is time: endless looped time.”_

And **_THAT_ ** gave Marinette an _idea._ Everyone was so focused on the movie that they failed to miss the strange smile that slid across her face. Was it crazy? Oh yes, certainly. But was it impossible…? Well now, there was only one way to find out!

\------------

“...so you’re saying you’re really going to defeat that mean ole Hawk Moth by taking inspiration from one of them new-fangled motion pictures?” Ziggy floated above her head, curiously. “Well, slap my head and call me stupid! All the same, I worry. Have you really thought this plan out, Miss Marinette? You can put your boots in the oven but that don’t make ‘em biscuits! Are you sure this will work?”  
  
“Truthfully… no,” Marinette admitted. “...for one thing, I still have to find Hawk Moth! ...and then face him in battle. It’s one thing to say you have a plan, it’s another putting it into action.”  
  
“Shouldn’t you wait for Cat Noir?” Orikko asked, nodding in agreement with Ziggy. “...this does sound like a job you need your partner for!”

“Now now, hold up. The church ain’t over till the choir stops singin’!” Ziggy said. “Let’s wait and hear what Miss Marinette has to say!”  
  
“I’m done getting my team put in harm’s way, I don’t want Cat Noir in the line of fire,” Marinette said stubbornly. “Besides, the way my plan works… I don’t even need his help.”

“If you say so…” Orikko mused, shaking his head. 

“Can it be done?” Marinette asked, looking to Sass and Fluff.

“Oh yes, most certainly! It can be done, could be done? I think it has been done,” Fluff babbled, the little rabbit floating about in thought. “Time can be bended, molded if you know what you’re doing. Or will be doing. Or have done.”  
  
“What Fluff is trying to say, Great Guardian,” Sass translated. “Is that yes, what you want can be pulled off. But I still think you should have back up…”  
  
“Again,” Marinette’s eyes hardened. “My team has taken enough hits for me, I don’t want to put Cat in harm’s way. I can do this.”  
  
Her eyes were harsh, but moist as she thought of just how much she’d lost lately. Ziggy floated next to her, wiping her tears. “You’re very brave Miss Marinette, taking Hawk Moth on alone like this. Master Fu was right to choose you as his successor, it seems the apple don’t fall far from the tree!”

“I’m done sitting and waiting for Hawk Moth to act,” Marinette replied. “It’s time I strike first!”  
  
“Now that’s the spirit! You can do this, will do this?” Fluff cheered her on. “...or have you done this?”  
  
“Now while I admit what Fluff is saying makes about as much sense as stringin’ a hammock between two cornstalks, you are rightly determined and riled up! That rustler Hawk Moth has taken too much from all of us,” Ziggy said. “It’s time you done and ended this, dadgum! The idea of this finally being over… well, if you ask me it’s as good as grits!”

Of course, before this could finally be over she had to actually _find_ Hawk Moth. So it was back to searching the skies. 

Climbing up the fire escape was a pain and a half, she didn’t have the agility her Miraculous gave her outside the suit after all. She was… well aware of the possibility that this could take a while.

She could be watching the skies for _days_ honestly. And in this heat, well… okay, maybe this was just a teensy bit crazy. But Hawk Moth had stepped up his game. Just a little bit of crazy seemed to be looking more appetizing by the day.

Something caught the corner of her eye, off in the distance. Immediately, her gaze shot towards another part of the city where a little butterfly was flapping on death’s wing. 

After purifying this one, -Hawk Moth must have been wondering why he hadn’t created a supervillain today- she watched it fly off as the red from her suit washed away. With any luck, it would be heading back towards it’s… no. Damn!  
  
It was flying up into the sky towards a park. Okay, so this one was a wash. But throughout the week, the cycle continued. Search the sky, and when a butterfly comes purify it. Next, think about the general direction it had come from.

This took about two weeks before she realized she was in the next arrondissement entirely. The buildings got nicer, fancier as the people got richer. A horrible theory began lurking in the back of her mind.

She’d suspected someone rich as Hawk Moth before. ...but, he’d been cleared of suspicion right? It couldn’t have been him, not after… Another theory began to lurk as a very ugly image worked itself into her mind. 

Of course, she should have seen it. They should have seen it! Her knuckles were white, Marinette clenching her fists hard. She didn’t want to, but she had to confirm her theory.

All she needed to do was wait for her next little black butterfly to show itself…

She didn’t have to wait long, and with a horrible feeling in her gut she watched where it came from. 

_“Oh no, please no…”_ Marinette continued to think as she eyed the Agreste Mansion. But part of the dome on top of it had opened. Like a window. _“Shit! ...oh no, my poor Prince!”_ _  
_ _  
_ Fury raced through her like an inferno, and she couldn’t cleanse the butterfly fast enough. Taking a deep breath to calm herself, Paris’ defender knew what she had to do.

Reaching into her pocket, she pulled off Fluff’s stopwatch. It clicked and ticked with each passing second, feeling like an eternity. 

_“You could always back out now…”_ a voice sounding like Tikki told her. _“You could go get your partner, face him together!”_ _  
_ _  
_ No, she told the voice shutting that thought down even as she snapped Sass’s bracelet to her wrist. Her kitty didn’t even need to know, this could end without a fight! Yeah, it had to. And she said the fateful words.

“Fluff, Clockwise!”  
  
Energy, impossibly ancient beyond measure washed over her and she crashed through the window clad in a hooded robe. The inspiration was obvious, yellow replaced with white and aquamarine.

“Wha…?” Hawk Moth thundered, and Whitesnake had to resist laughing at his new outfit. He looked like Prince Zuko, only _oh so much less_ cool. “Who are you? How’d you find me?”  
  
“That doesn’t really matter does it,” the heroine responded, just barely about to keep the rage out of her voice as she glides across the room like a spectre. “Hawk Moth, I’ve come to bargain.”

“It’s Shadow Moth now,” he said, pulling out his sword and Whitesnake only had a second to act before she knew no more. “And you have made a grave mistake coming here!”  
  
Time rewound, and then she was crashing through the window to meet Hawk… or whatever he called himself once more.

“Hawk Moth, I’ve come to bargain.”

“It’s Shadow Moth now,” the villain corrected her again, and again he pulled out his sword. Again, Whitesnake only had a second to act before she knew no more. “And you have made a grave mistake coming here!”

Again, she crashed through the window. All was going according to plan.

“Hawk Moth,” Whitesnake said, unable to keep a bit of cockiness out of her voice as her confidence grew. “I’ve come to bargain.”

“It’s Shadow…” the villain started before it began to dawn on him that something was wrong. “...what’s going on? What is this?”

_“Well, thank the kwamis that Gabriel doesn’t seem to be up on popular culture!”_

“It’s called time, and the clock’s run out for you,” she was rather proud of that one. “Now, as I said. I’ve come to bargain!”

Too late she noticed Shadow Moth rushing up towards her and heard the shatter of glass. She was flying through the air. Whitesnake turned, and saw a building rushing to greet her. Before the crack of bone, came a call.

“Second Chance!”

Again, she rushed in.

“I’ve come to bar-” she started before all around her, the walls opened up and missiles rushed towards her. “Second Chance!”  
  
Then the fire.

Then she crashed through the wall again, glass shattering and a dark figure turning to meet her.

“Hawk Moth, I’ve come to bargain.”  
  
“Make this stop,” Shadow Moth hissed out, pressing a button as the walls closed in. “Maybe if I shatter your Miraculous it’ll break this loop!”  
  
Again, time rewound exactly five minutes before that could happen. The words were like a mantra now.

“Hawk Moth, I’ve come to bargain.”

Should she be worried about how many times she was dying, the number only rising with each Second Chance? No. Whitesnake could hear the desperation in Hawk Moth’s voice, the rising rage along with it.

Just a few more go arounds and she should have him.

“Hawk Moth, I’ve come to bargain.”

This time, missile-less arms erupted from the walls and latched onto her. She could feel the strain even as they pulled. A scream rose up from her throat. 

“Second Chance!”  
  
And the walls were splattered with blood, before it oozed back and reformed.

“Hawk Moth, I’ve come to bargain.”

“Make. This. Stop!” her archenemy raged, as they dueled. Her parasol against his sword. 

“I’m sorry, but I can’t. This is how it is now,” Whitesnake grinned. “You and me, living this moment, forever. You can kill me all you like, but it won’t change a damn thing.”  
  
She’d been blown up, defenestrated, stabbed, nearly pulled apart. And now she was thrown down an elevator shaft. Even as the earth raced up to meet her in a dark embrace, the loop continued.

“Second Chance!”  
  
Again, she crashed through the window. Again, and again, and again. This moment was her life now. Her and Gabriel’s.

“Hawk Moth, I’ve come to-” she started, before a sentimonster rose up in front of her. Impossibly large, it smashed through the roof but even as the blue sky rushed in... Whitesnake had no time to think about the new source of light. Instead, all she could see was the foot about to crush her.

“Second Chance!”  
  
Time continued to rewind at her discretion, by now Shadow Moth looked exhausted. Old age must have been catching up with him.

“Leave me!”  
  
“I’m sorry, but I can’t,” Whitesnake grinned confidently, knowing he was on the edge. “We’re stuck together. You know something? I think you’re my prisoner now.”  
  
“NO!” Shadow Moth thundered, grabbing a hold of her by the neck.  
  
Time rewound again, and this time there wasn’t even a fight.

“...what is it you want?” Shadow Moth asked, weary and sliding up against the wall looking ready to slip into unconsciousness.

“Hawk Moth…” his enemy said. “...I’ve come to bargain. Give me your Miraculous, and I promise you, I’ll break the loop.”

“You… promise?” Gabriel asked desperately, reaching for the Moth and the Peacock. 

“I promise,” Whitesnake smiled warmly, and saw Gabriel’s transformation drop. Rage coursed through her again. “...but that doesn’t mean I promise I’ll let you go. I’ll be back, you know. Just in case you step out of line.”  
  
“...step out of line?”

“You’re a horrible father you know,” Whitesnake scowled. “You could stand to pay more attention to your son. Well, now maybe that you’re done akumatizing poor civilians you can actually _try_ to be a halfway decent parent.”  
  
“So that’s all that this was about?” the former supervillain asked. “Your desire for me to be a father to my son?”  
  
“Well, I _did_ say I’d come here to strike a bargain,” Whitesnake returned. “...You’re done terrorizing the city Gabriel. You start to be a decent father, and I won’t turn you into the police. You get to keep your fashion empire, and your son gets to keep his father. I don’t _want_ to ruin Adrien’s life, you understand?”  
  
“You… care for him,” Gabriel realized. “That’s why you came.”  
  
“Yes,” Whitesnake admitted, trying to keep a vicious grin off of her face. Instead, it was mostly a weary satisfied smile. And to think, all this was started because of a movie! “...so, do we have a bargain?”

“I… think we do.”

**Author's Note:**

> Huge thanks to Barkie_Boo for proofing this!
> 
> Okay, so... yeah, this was basically a side project, something to defrag my brain while I work on Arospec week. I needed something silly, something a bit stupid to work on for a bit, and I think this qualifies. So, enjoy. I regret nothing! But in all seriousness, I *loved* the original scene as it's one of the few times in superhero movies a villain isn't defeated by fist. But just by straight up annoying them before they gave up.
> 
> Also, you a fan of Ladybug, and are you searching for a place to share your love for the series? Join us here at the [Miraculous Fanworks Discord! ](https://discord.gg/mlfanworks)


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